Sarcasm Seems Appropriate

Confession: I am a collector of wine. Hmmmm… Yep, the tone works. Lately, I am feeling like I need to apologize to wineries, retailers and distributors for collecting and storing their product. Maybe I need to start a Collector’s Anonymous group? Perhaps, I can develop a 12 step approach to curing my apparent illness and become famous. You may ask yourself, “Why haven’t I heard of this problem?” It has been camouflaged, lurking around the edges of changing demographics and trending demand.

These days, I am feeling the need to justify a collector’s version of wine appreciation. The majority of my wine inventory is 8-15 years old and some as much as 25. As my inventory ages, the enjoyment of complex, textured and elegant wine grows. This wine world I live in, is no longer fashionable to the industry crowd.

$$Another Impact of Changing Demographics$$

Let’s use Napa wineries as an example. 25-30 years ago most major Bordeaux style red wine producers in Napa (Beringer, Mondavi, Montelena, Jos Phelps, etc.) all were producing wines capable of aging 15-30 years (some more). After 2000, those drinking windows started moving and became 10-12 years. The next threshold was crossed about 2014. Now, many of the traditional Napa wines I drink have had drinking windows landing somewhere in a 5-8 year range. I now have to be careful NOT to hold these wines too long. It just goes against my grain to pop $100/btl wine in less than 5 years!

Why should the average wine consumer care? To produce earlier drinking red wines, the style usually requires more time in contact with new American oak, often are more extracted, higher in alcohol and less acidic. In short, easier drinking wines that are appealing to the younger, less experienced palate.

I am now thinking of canceling many of my California wine clubs and moving to more Bordeaux product. Even many Chianti, Chianti Classico and Brunello wineries have succumbed. Barolo and Barbaresco too, but those wines had aging windows of 25-50 years and are now landing at 10-25 years. I can live with that. Too many wineries are relenting to the economic pressure of appealing to the growing Millenial segment that is looking for drink-now wines, even in the luxury price range (over $50/btl). Caymus and Silver Oak are the well-known examples to reference in this category.

Old World Sensibility Matters

Balance, balance and more balance! All this extended cold soak and maceration and barrel aging in New American Oak, ugh! Many red wines are now so heavily extracted, they ruin all but the richest foods. Yes, oak makes the wine rounder and adds pleasing vanilla flavors… It also adds wood and butter in reds (like Chardonnay) and destroys the freshness of the fruit. If you enjoy wine with food, forget it. These wines are so round, they will not cut through accompanying food.

Thank goodness I still have Bordeaux to turn to. Fewer and fewer Napa wineries care about producing a structured, balanced red wine that can age. My wine buying days have not ended yet, just turned to 10 year old red Bordeaux from auction!

Pardon the reference to cliche 90’s pop culture, but it does kind of capture the feeling. This producer will turn your world upside down! Soave… memories of wine as a kid were my relatives drinking cheap Soave on a weekend afternoon. Of course, that graduated to Mogen-David Concord wine with dinner.

This was my understanding of Soave for decades. Now, I know how wrong I was. My wife and I visited Soave, Italy a few years ago and found a producer that was mind-blowingly good: Pieropan. Since then I have purchased this wine domestically and have held it in my cellar for a few years. My wife and I just popped a 2013 Pieropan Soave Classico. What a beautiful white wine!

2013 Pieropan Soave Classico

Soave, Italy

Tasting Note:

Nose is rich with candied lemon rind, lemon mousse and chalky minerality. The mouthfeel of this five year old white wine is astonishing. The texture is like melted butter! The fruit is fresh and crisp on the attack with high acidity. The oak is noticeable, but not overpowering. The palate follows the nose closely, but adds more complexity with green apple, pear and floral elderberry. The lemon mousse on the palate is gorgeous! The attack moves on to a slightly bitter, chalky mid-palate of key lime and a fruity finish that lasts forever. The few years of bottle age significantly improved the mouthfeel of this wine.

I only have a few bottles left. I need to buy more. At under $20/btl this is an exceptional deal!

Introduction

This was our first group meeting and we elected to stay away from tasting themes and bring wines from our cellars we wanted to share. With that much diversity it was important to get the tasting order right (which I think we did). Great lineup! It was great to share all this wine with folks who can appreciate it!

We wanted to taste these in order of power, complexity and nuance and one of our members who was tasked to sequence the wines was awfully close… in this order: CdP, Barolo, Brunello, Bordeaux, Dunn, Barnett and Saxum. The only change I would have made is swapping the order of the Barnett and Saxum.

Fresh strawberry and raspberry on the nose. Fresh fruit on the attack that subsides to a light, medium length bitter chocolate finish. High tannins and medium plus acidity. Soft wine (in Barolo terms) without a lot of mouthfeel. Wishing for more complexity here… some floral or tar aspects would add interest, but is missing. Beautiful young Barolo, but missing the complexity that would rate this higher. Perhaps, more age will bring out more nuance.

Beautiful nose of fresh strawberry. Barely fruit-forward with fresh sweet strawberry on the palate, an earthy mid-palate and a medium length sour strawberry finish. Medium acidity and low tannins. As a 1978 CdP this was special. Having a soft texture with a fair amount of acidity and tannins, this expressed the best of the region in an aged format. I could drink this wine all night. Finishing the bottle was a definite disappointment. Complex, fruit-forward, soft wine, still with good structure… if every wine I aged in my cellar turned out like this, I would be laying everything down. This was a wine worth waiting for. Who knew CdPs could last 40 years!

Plum and blackberry on the nose. Fruit forward palate of red and black fruit with a bitter chocolate mid-palate that follows through to a medium length finish. High acidity and high tannins. Wonderful Margaux-like round, soft mouthfeel. Still young Brunello that probably needs another 5 years (or so) to enter its best drinking window. Enjoyable now, but still developing.

Fruity nose of boysenberry, plum and blackberry. Blackberry and plum on the attack with a leather mid-palate. A slightly bitter, mildly fruity short finish. Medium plus acidity and tannin. Soft mouthfeel from resolved tannin. This wine is drinking great right now. Could be slightly past its optimum drinking window, but still a fantastic wine. Drink up!

Rich blackberry and plum on the nose with a touch of herbal mint. The palate is barely fruit forward with plum in front giving way to blackberry. Medium acidity and medium plus tannin. Earth, leather and tobacco on the mid-palate with a fresh, medium length blackberry finish. Very balanced wine in its drinking window. Soft mouthfeel with a slightly silky texture. Drink now.

Blackberry with heavy oak on the nose. Fruit forward blackberry palate. A nicely integrated high alcohol wine. Simpler flavor profile focused more on the velvety texture. Very much like Silver Oak, but not quite as fruity. Integrated and balanced wine with medium plus acidity and tannins.

Red and black fruit on the nose with a touch of alcohol. Fruit forward with blackberry from the Syrah and earthiness from the Mourvèdre. The touch of strawberry/raspberry from the Grenache does not present until the finish. This is a really gorgeous wine that was meant to drink in a 5-10 year window. High acidity and medium plus tannin. Long fruity finish. Solid fruit-forward structured wine. A Saxum drinking super well when young. Interesting to have such a silky mouthfeel without more age on it! Give this a few more years and it will continue to improve.

Somm Training

I was taught that wines made out of balance, never come around with age. Out of balance – always out of balance! When the tannins, acidity, fruit and alcohol are not complementary in a wine, they will all resolve at a similar rate and never be harmonious. I have always selected young wines to age in my cellar by this measure. Bordeaux wine (in particular) can shut down for a year(s) until ready for drinking, but I have never experience something as traumatic as this.

The Experience

This is a wine I have history with. I was so looking forward to tasting this after some age in the bottle. It was gorgeous, with great potential when tasted out of the barrel. We drank our first bottle about five years ago, after 8 years in my cellar. Gosh, what a mess of a wine. We opened the second bottle about two years ago and it was even worse. All we experienced was alcohol and acidity! Well, we popped the last bottle a few weeks ago and SURPRISE! Please find my tasting note below:

2005 St. Supery Cabernet Franc

Napa Valley, CA

This was the last bottle of three, with an interesting personal history. Tasted this wine in the barrel prior to bottling back in 2005. Amazing wine in the barrel. The first two bottles drunk over the last five years were an awful mess. My first experience with a wine this out of balance significantly improving with time. The first two bottles had very noticeable alcohol, extreme acidity and fruit in the background. Apparently, this disjointed wine needed time to come together. Just popped the last bottle and it was beautiful! Fruit forward nose of blackberry, plum and mint. Palate is soft and inviting. Approach is just barely fruit forward following the nose. The alcohol has become integrated and the very high acidity has softened. The tannins have resolved leaving both structure and mouthfeel, without astringency. The fruit persists into a long finish. What was unpleasant before, has flipped a switch and reached its potential. First time I have experienced a mess of a wine coming together over time. It took 13 years of awful tasting wine for this to finally reach its drinking window. I have heard similar stories, but never experienced a radical transformation myself. If you are holding a bottle, this is your time. Let me know if you have had the same experience.

RESTAURANT REVIEW:

Veritas Gateway to Food and Wine

St. Louis Metro, Missouri

A comfortable venue. The layout offers an interactive experience with the chef preparing food directly in front at the bar. The menu changes weekly per the executive chef and availability of best sources.

Service was a bit weak for a fine dining experience, but acceptable. Was a little put-off when I ordered a Vouvray (Chenin Blanc) white wine from their list and received a very grassy Sauv Blanc. The server made it right and offered a taste of two other whites of which I chose the:

The cook staff was friendly, talkative and interactive. An aspect of the dining experience I particularly enjoyed. This was a quality foodie experience, but if you visit, you will want to know your mind to match that same quality to the wine. Overall, I enjoyed the evening in a warm spot when the outdoors was running about 18 deg F

Purchased this bottle at a newer tasting room in Los Olivos, Santa Barbara County, California. Their notoriety has come from capturing an excellent expression of California grown Grenache. Their 100% Grenache wines were excellent (purchased these too). This odd blend was too tasty to pass up. Just introduced to this producer this year and really enjoying this winemaker’s style! Good value… if you run across this producer, give them a try.

I attended a presentation today at the 2017 Wine Bloggers Conference by a group of four Zin winery owners sponsored by ZAP (Zin Advocates & Producers) and heard this plea: we are serious winemakers producing serious wine, we deserve to be taken seriously! The session was titled “Zinfandel: Old and New.” I was expecting a serious discussion about old and new wine styles, but instead we heard the usual tired Zin topic: comparing old vs. young vine Zin. Not that this isn’t a viable topic, it has just been covered many times in many places and not really what these winemakers were passionate about. The ZAP moderator had to focus the discussion back on promoting the vineyards several times. This brings me to the reason for this commentary. I have seen it many times, when a winery doesn’t understand how best to develop a coordinated marketing plan, the focus is put on expression of place (terroir). There are definitely worse ideas, but Zinfandel in particular is a special case. Zinfandel has an identity problem first and foremost and if that isn’t addressed, all discussion of place is lost in the noise.

Red Zinfandel Wine & Consumer Perception

Zinfandel is the most manipulated wine grape on the planet. It is made in so many styles, you really have no idea what to expect every time you open a bottle from an unfamiliar producer. In contrast, when I pop Bordeaux/Meritage, Burgundy, or Rhône style wines, regardless of where they are made, I have a rough idea of what I will be tasting. That is a serious problem. If ZAP is trying to bring Zin into the premium space, they should be focusing on this issue. Collectors and restarauteurs need to have a point of reference. It must be quite difficult to build a marketing plan around a wine profile that is not generally familiar. Does the marketplace need some sort of generally accepted Zin style indicators?

So, here we go… my attempt to address this challenge:

RICH Zinfandel – Characterized by winemaking technique aimed at broad general appeal and high volume production. Usually driven by ideas like: whole cluster vacuum fermentation to add extraction and big fruit flavors, extended cold soak for more extraction, late harvest to accentuate over-ripe and raisiny fruit flavors and optical sorting to isolate late harvest raisins to make a concentrated must used to fortify larger batch production. Good examples would be Lodi and Paso Robles producers chasing the jammy Zin profile.

WARM CLIMATE Zinfandel – These would be producers in warm climate areas with a fine wine sensibility. Using Guyot trellising and vertical shoot positioning to build a Bordeaux style approach to Zin. This type of winemaking in these locations makes what I would call Zin with finesse. Not overly fruit-forward with low tannins and medium to medium-high acidity, often shooting for soft wines with good mouthfeel. Napa and Dry Creek Zin producers would be the example here.

COOL CLIMATE Zinfandel – These producers are trying to build a leaner style Zin with medium to high tannins and high to very high acidity. Often traditionalists, these estate vineyards are usually head-trained and laid out with more space 8’x8’ or 8’x12’ between the vines building a large cluster approach to fruit production. Zin tends to always drive fruity flavor profiles, so growing in a location with just enough sun and warmth to ripen the fruit seems to work. This is probably a “truer” expression of Zin for you purists and builds a wine much better for pairing with food. Producers from Amador and El Dorado Counties and Russian River are examples in this category.

Zinfandel BLEND – This is the newest idea in the industry and popularized by the very successful release of “The Prisoner” by Orin Swift orginally. Zinfandel as a varietal has broken through the stigma and become a more common blending grape. Several producers in Paso Robles have begun using Zin to add a fruit-forward and aromatic character in lieu of the traditional Grenache found in most Rhone blends. I find the result quite interesting. Try an example of a red blend with Zinfandel in the mix. When done well, these wines can be fruit-forward, acidic, tannic and have great mouthfeel all at once.

Wine Tasting Session

2015 Terra d’Oro Deaver Vineyard – Mildly fruit-forward and slightly sour. Much like a Chianti without the structure. Some complexity would add interest. Medium acidity and tannins.

2015 Cedarville Vineyard Zinfandel – A fruit-forward nose and palate with black cherry and strawberry. A light mid-palate and finish of bitter dark chocolate. Medium-high acidity and medium-high tannins. This had a nice aromatic nose. Nice effort that maintains the integrity of the Zin profile, while offering a structured food-friendly approach.

2015 Proulx Zinfandel – A strong red fruit profile with a brambly note and a dominating nail polish character on the nose. Medium-high acidity and medium tannins.

2015 Limerick Lane Wines 1910 Block – This is loosely a Zinfandel “field blend”. More blackberry than the other wines tasted here (more black vs. red fruit). The enhanced black fruit is likely due to the other red varietals planted in this vineyard. There was a brambly character that added a pleasant complexity. High acidity and medium tannins.

Cool Climate Zinfandel

These four wines were grown in areas where at least the evenings are quite cool and the fruit is often picked a little earlier than other California Zin producers. These wine profiles were deliberately built to offer a more classic style of red wine with good structure and to pair well with food. Think food pairings like poultry, or pork – in particular, a Thanksgiving meal sort of sensibility.

Zinfandel Marketing

How do YOU feel about Zinfandel? It can be made in a very serious wine style, but is not often thought of this way. Marketing is critical for the producers in this style. It was mentioned in the session that these producers were not successfully selling into the Midwest and East Coast markets. The answer has to be an organization like ZAP that could develop a product identity well understood by the wine community.

My wife and I spent years visiting Napa Valley thinking that Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars was THE Napa Stags Leap… Not that I put research, or thought into it, but I had no idea there were TWO. Many years ago, my wife and I arranged a tasting appointment at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars and were hit over the head with their rustic approach to red wine. It is always a difficult decision to buy wines that require 10 years in the cellar to enjoy. We made that calculation in those early years and never visited that Stag’s Leap again. Surprise, discovering there is another similarly named winery with a completely different approach to making wine!

Trade Tasting at Stags’ Leap Winery

This was a beautiful property. Everything you could want in a destination winery property: picturesque, historical buildings with architectural interest and a colorful history all tucked back in a forested valley, off the Silverado Trail on the East Side of Napa Valley. Although, what was truly special was the wine.

Christophe Paubert – Winemaker

This was an opportunity to tour the facility, taste the product, hear the winemaker discuss his wines, ask questions and immerse yourself in this winery’s experience. The best kind of wine country adventure! Christophe is a passionate, down-to-earth guy with a vision for his wine. An Old World artist with a New World sensibility. Here is one of those special winemakers who succeeds in leaving his signature behind with every wine produced. Each red wine had a special character to the tannins… all very structured, with age-ability. Even young, the tannins were so fine, as to make the wine approachable on release. After 20+ years of collecting and tasting premium wine, you learn to recognize a deft hand. Grainy, rustic tannins in red wine become a bludgeon, beating you over the head. This heavy-handed, unpleasant approach to red wine magnifies a seeming lack of experience (interest?) in a refined approach to collectible wine production. On the other hand, this winemaker understands the importance of nuance in his approach. Think muscular, with a gentle side and a focus on aromas that draw you in. I have always had a soft spot for winemakers that pay attention to the nose when building their wine profile.

The Wines

2016 Viognier – Alsatian white wine feel with citrus and tropical fruits, minerality and a touch of spice. Huge acid backbone for a Viognier. Interesting and complex with a profile that could pair well with foods, or be drunk on its own.

2016 Napa Valley Chardonnay – Mix of new/neutral oak and stainless. No malolactic ferment. Tropical fruit and citrus on the nose. This is an Old World style Chardonnay that does not use a malo ferment to tame the acidity and add butter flavors (yay!) Contact with the lees has been used to add texture. This is a crisp, aromatic, high acid Chardonnay. Perfect pairing for seafood and white cream sauces, but fruity and interesting enough to drink on its own.

2014 Block 20 Estate Merlot – A lighter, more structured style than your typical Napa Merlot. A Right Bank Bordeaux feel, but with such fine, approachable tannins, it takes you down the path to Margaux. Plummy fruit forward nose and palate, with a rich brown butter flavor adding interest. The brown butter often comes from a combination of aging on the lees and just the right toast on the barrels. Christophe asserted this was just the character of this vintage’s fruit. Either way, a special Merlot that highlights the best of both Old and New World wines.

2014 Twelve Falls Estate Red – I just wanted to bathe in this stuff! Unusual blend of Cab Sauv, Petite Sirah and Merlot. The PS was handled in such a way that it complimented the other varietals, instead of overwhelming them. Plum, blackberry, blueberry, spice and everything nice! High acidity and high tannins. Superb red blend!

2014 The Leap Estate Cabernet Sauvignon – Needed time to open and unwind. Steadily blooming flavors and complexity over time. This is a highly structured Cab Sauv with very high acidity and high tannins. Fruit forward blackberry and currant out front, with earth and leather to the mid-palate. I found myself wishing for a bit longer finish, but the silky mouth-feel filled the gap. Beautiful approachable young Napa Cab Sauv.

2014 Ne Cede Malis Estate Field Blend Red – Odd field blend of Bordeaux and Rhone varietals both red and white. Areas of this block in the estate vineyards were planted back to 1920. High acidity and high tannins, busy flavors and silky mouthfeel. Quite nice on the nose and on the palate. I think I am a touch too traditional… the wine had me thinking too much about identifying varietals and associated flavors. I know complex red blends are becoming more popular, taking us back to a hundred years ago when field blends were much more common, but recognizing wine styles brings a certain amount of comfort. This wine could easily grow on me, but would take time.

Stags’ Leap Wine Style

Consistently fine tannins and an aromatic nose were indicative of these wines. All highly structured, age-able and food friendly, these wines were also soft, pretty and approachable when young. Characteristic of a talented winemaker working with high quality fruit. Tasting appointments are required. Call ahead and take the time to find this hidden gem. It will be well worth your while.

Northern Italy generally utilizes a different winemaking style: Southern Italy tends to make easier drinking red wine, versus Northern where reds tend to have more tannin and can be bottle aged. Tuscany in Central Italy can make both styles, but the Sangiovese and Cab Sauv grapes that dominate this area are not difficult to recognize.

The ringer:

Unusual winemaking processes commonly used by producers in the Western Veneto area (North) can produce fruity, rich red wines:

Appassimento – a process for drying of grapes and concentrating flavors (think raisins)

Ripasso – a process where additional skins from previously pressed fruit is added to the must to add structure

Wine Tasting Notes & Comments

So, I landed five out of six for North/South growing region and the one ringer DID fool me. The Zenato wine was made Appassimento style and I thought it was Southern. The wine selections was great, but I missed having a traditional Barolo (North region) in the mix and it would have been fun to add a Dolcetto, Barbera (both North varietals), or Aglianico (South varietal) that might trick us. Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is a classic southern wine and probably should have been represented instead of multiple wines from Sicily.

Before we begin with the tasting notes, an observation about my palate. I enjoy fruity wines with the best of them, but they need to have some structure. Flabby, grape juice tasting wines are not my favorite, in fact I can enjoy big, young Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. Keep that in mind when reading the notes below…

Zenato – My favorite wine of the night. Lots of fruit both red and black on the nose and palate. Medium-low acidity and tannin with a dark chocolate mid-palate and finish. There was an interesting almost tar-like finishing note, with violets. Something like the finish of a good aged Barbaresco… The wine had some structure, but the complexity was the real draw. This is a drink now wine. Best drinking window 2016-2018.

Fuedo Maccari – My number two from the list. Saia is one of the few wines coming out of Sicily with a reputation preceding it. This is a fruit forward wine of black fruit and dark chocolate, with medium acidity and medium-low tannins. There is a touch of sweetness. This is a lighter, softer wine, but a bit muscular compared to a typical Nero d’Avola. These Sicilian Nero d’Avola wines are fantastic value red table wines, but definitely don’t elevate to the level of product coming from better mainland producers. Saia is arguably the best of the Sicilian group, but will cost you a few dollars more. For those who enjoy a consistently fruity wine year over year, easy drinking – with some complexity, this would be a solid selection. Best drinking window: 2015-2019.

Tenuta Sette Ponti – This was a very disappointing, overpriced wine. I would choose their Crognolo label for much less money, or their Oreno label for a little more. High tannins and acidity make up its structure. The wine is not fruit forward and primarily presents an extremely bitter chocolate palate with some earthy character. You could say: “with some bottle age this may tone down”… but there is not enough balance to think it will improve drastically. The texture is good, with a long finish. Best drinking window: 2020-2030.

Planeta

La Segreta – Fruit forward with all red fruit on the nose and palate. The structure has no tannins and low acidity. The texture is slightly watery. This wine is past its drinking window. You can tell this is a drink now wine, that should have been drunk: 2014-2016. The 50% Nero d’Avola and 20% Merlot in this mix was a match made for a drink now table wine.

Burdese – Slightly fruit forward with red fruit on the nose and palate. Strong dark chocolate character on the mid-palate and finish. The cab franc adds a slightly spicy character. The structure was high in both tannins and acidity. This wine still needs more time in the bottle. Could make an effective food wine. Best drinking window: 2019-2022.

Altesino – Fruit forward with red and black fruits on the nose and palate. There was a forest floor character to the nose that blows off after about 20 mins. This is a very average Rosso di Montalcino with a very little bit of Brunello character. It is easy drinking and without much structure. The typical dark chocolate finish is there. Pretty decent, but maybe I just want to compare it too much with the much more expensive Brunello wines.

Fun Stuff

We invited our neighbors to join us and we all had a great time, including dinner afterwards. There were four other couples at the event and everyone enjoyed themselves. The rep from Young’s Market was fairly knowledgeable and added interest. If you haven’t tried a blind tasting, give it a shot. It adds a little extra entertainment to a tasting and the suspense of your assessment adds to the experience.

2012 Saviah Cellars Girl & the Goat

Walla Walla AVA, WA

Wine Tasting Note:

Rich, fruity blackberry, plum and spice on the nose. Fruit forward blackberry, plum and black currant on the palate, moving to a mid-palate and finish of copious amounts of dark chocolate. Spicy white pepper and cinnamon undertones. Medium-high acidity and medium tannin structure. Nice silky mouth-feel with an extra long finish. Super well-balanced wine. Drinking great right now… best window: 2016-2019. I wish this was more widely available than just in the restaurant in Chicago. I was gifted this bottle by Richard Funk the winemaker/owner at Saviah Cellars who took on the challenge of making this wine for Stephanie Izard – owner of Girl & the Goat. This wine is produced from his near perfect estate Petit Verdot vintage in Walla Walla during 2012. This is a superlative wine for drinking by itself and with food. I drank this with a coffee rubbed NY strip and it was a great match. 50% Petit Verdot, 25% Cab Sauv, 25% Cab Franc.

I don’t know whether the vision for this wine was the chef’s, or the winemaker’s, but this turned out to be a wonderful wine. Richard Funk is a great guy. I really enjoyed spending time with him during our last trip to Walla Walla. He really hit a home run with this wine and I hope that Petit Verdot vineyard of his produces more great vintages in the future!